Halfway there…

I find myself staring at the calendar, and only after a few minutes realized, that we are past the half way point of 2018. Where did the time go? Immediately panic mode strikes in. That feeling of sitting in front of the principal’s office not really sure what your fate is going to be once you get called in.

Assessing whether or not all that was planned for the year up until now has been dealt with successfully. As I look back I realize this was one amazing year so far, although it felt like it flew by. They say as one gets older time ticks on much faster, and this is so true!

I think about everything that happened and the nervous feeling turns into a more serene, calm feeling and a grin starts to form on my face.

After the success of the grape harvest, we immediately started with the olive harvest which for a change had a bumper crop just waiting for us to turn it into olive oil and table olives. And my-o-my, I cannot describe amazing aromas that filled our olive factory the past 3 months!

The olive harvest is drawing to a close, so we are preparing to start pruning the vines which are currently in hibernation. After the grape harvest the vines needs a certain number of cold units to go into a dormant phase. We have been blessed with an unbelievable winter so far. I believe the whole world prayed for rain in South Africa, and so far, He delivered. All of us are slowly but surely breathing a big sigh of relief after we had above normal rainfall here on the farm as well as in the important dam regions in the Western Cape.

I look back on the amazing success of our new Saartjie Single Vineyard selection Launch and I am so thankful to our loyal customers for being so open to our new wine range. And also, all the changes that our Restaurant and Beer brewery underwent, and still needs to undergo.

I recently did a tasting of all our new 2018 wines that are hibernating in their beautiful French homes (Barrels) and I am overly excited on how they turned out this year! I know it is still early days but I foresee 2018 to be one of my best vintages here on the Farm. So, watch this space…

After reminiscing for at least 10 minutes, I feel content and know that I will be going into the second part of the year with a full heart.

There’s a saying that goes: “Choose a job that you love and you will never have to work a day in your life”. Thank goodness for a job like mine!